First Impressions: (8 out of 15)
Honestly, as first impressions go, having DDoS protection that requires people to go through a check to see if they are DDoSing the forum before they are allowed access is annoying. And your forum is not the first one that I have come across that does that for the first load of the website. That in itself can be a put off for some people, as it makes it look like you are overly protective about your forum, especially since you are using a free forum software. For this, I recommend that you do the DDoS protection in the background, so to not have potential issues with people who hate having to go through a portal that takes a bit of time to check to see if they are not doing anything suspicious.
For the age of the forum, I am happy to say that you have some good posting stats for a forum that started out at the beginning of the month. Not many forums boast 200 or more posts initially when opening.
I also love your theme's colors, as it isn't overly bearing on my eyes. I love this particular blend of colors.
Site Structure: (11 out of 15)
I like how you made the structure of your forum simple. Not too many boards, yet plenty of boards to cover most basic subjects. My main recommendation is for you to increase the description of the Webmaster Forum, as the current description doesn't say much about it, other than the fact that it is a title repeat. Also, for the Gaming sub-forum, consider changing the description so to be more precise on what you can discuss there. Plus the fact that you are missing punctuation in the description of that board. Last but not least, you probably shouldn't include threats in the Contest Board description, as that throws me off. If you must say something like that, include a link to the rules thread in that board instead.
Design Quality: (13 out of 15)
It is a good design, as I mentioned in my first impressions of your forum. The main issue I have, is that if you got permission from the creator of the theme to use it, why isn't there credits in the footer, telling the members that the theme was made by someone else? As with all themes, if it was made by someone else, it helps verify that you are using a legitimate copy, if there are credits in the footer, to atleast mention the creator of it. This in itself can keep a few people from joining, because of fear of the owner (you), being a supposed theme ripper. While I am not saying you are one, but I am just mentioning that there may be some people who might just think that, and wont join because of it.
Originality: (14 out of 15)
There are a number of services out there that offer payment for posting on other forums, but I haven't seen too many forums that offer to pay you directory to post on their forum, instead of going through a third party website. Good job on that. I am assuming that you have a budget that doesn't allow for any major expenses right now? If so, then I understand why you have the payment per post and thread as you have them now.
As time goes on, as as you get the money to help cover the costs of running this forum, I expect you to increase the payment amounts to be above 10 cents a post. Just keep that in mind for the future, as that will help your forum out as it gains more members.
Overall Mark: (46 out of 60)
I hope you will take into consideration some of the points I brought up. Good luck with the forum!
